


Victory Date

by thelordofstarsanddreams



Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Angst, Cassian Flies Again, F/M, First Dates, Fluff, Happy Ending, I Am Here For Female Illyrians, Nesta Kicks Ass, Prythian Wins, Swimming, The Night Court, after the war
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-28
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-11 16:04:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7899034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelordofstarsanddreams/pseuds/thelordofstarsanddreams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After sacrificing himself to save Nesta during the war with Hybern, Cassian earns himself a date with the woman he almost died for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Victory Date

**Author's Note:**

> My first time writing Nessian. These two have such a fabulous dynamic, and I am just so here for Commander Nesta. These two would be brilliant bad asses together. Based on a prompt I originally got on Tumblr.

Ever since Nesta had been made Fae, she had quickly discovered that Cassian was very good at playing the hero and sacrificing himself for those he cared for. It was admirable trait, which was irritating as hell when all the woman wanted to do was find it easy to hate him.

In protecting Azriel with himself, his wings had been damaged, and for the longest time, none of them had known whether it was beyond repair. Cassian had fallen into a spiral, locking himself up in his room as he healed. Slow and painfully.

Nesta who had still been adjusting to being made new had dragged him kicking and screaming from that slump. Calling him every idiot and baby and coward of the day, she had eventually gotten him into the sparring yard.

If the day came when it was made apparent that he wouldn’t be able to use his wings again, then he still needed to make himself useful from the ground. So Nesta made him train her.

At first, Cassian was gentle. Reluctant to push the knew Fae and himself when he felt so useless without his wings. But Cauldron, if anyone could goad him it was Feyre’s damned sister.

By the end of the week, he was pushing her harder, sending her home bruised and bloodied. When the third week rolled around, Nesta was sending him back with his own wounds.

Two months of training and baiting and fighting and spending more time with each other than anyone else and Cassian flew again for the first time. It was a tiny journey around the square, testing his wings which were still raw and pained, but he flew.

From her balcony, Nesta watched him, unable to stop herself from smiling.

Even she couldn’t deny that he was beautiful against the endless night skies.

The war with Hybern escalated and burned through Prythian.

All their alliances, all their training, their people, their troops were put to the test.

Nesta had her place.

A ground battalion of Fae warriors from the Night Court, working the the Illyrian females who followed from above.

Cassian was a true leader. A rightful Commander.

Yet when Nesta had been knee deep in Hyberian blood, fighting an endless sea of warriors and they’d lined up their arrows, all directed at her, the force to be reckoned with, the Commander hadn’t wasted a moment in throwing himself in front of her.

Seven arrows hit him; his wings, his leg, arm, back.

And with a scream that traveled across the lands, a stream of light saw each archer and warrior with Hyberian heritage falling to their knees, blood streaming from their eyes and nose and ears before they died, slow and painful.

Nesta carried him back behind the line to the camp.

Without hesitation, Cassian had saved her. Put his life on the line to protect her.

If he wasn’t unconscious she would have knocked him out herself.

When he woke, the war was over. And Nesta was by his side to break the news to him.

The man could barely walk and yet, he insisted upon leaving the tent to join with his friends, to celebrate their freedom. Their victory.

It was that night Nesta agreed to a single date with Cassian, and two months later when they had returned to enough normality to have that date.

The Illyrian Commander flew them to the far edge of the lake just outside of Velaris. With a little help from his female cohorts, they had set up a picnic. A soft blanket, a handful of candles, and a feast of food that could have fed the whole of the townhouse.

It was verging into the Autumn months, so their was a cool breeze in the air that wasn’t unpleasant or uncomfortable. The water was like still glass, reflecting the skies above them which were as dark as the Night Court promised. A haze of blue and black and purple, scattered with glowing stars. An artist’s picture come to life.

They were silent at first.

Yet it wasn’t the awkward kind of silence which chewed away at a pair.

It was comfortable.

They ate, drank sparkling wine, lounged watching the water, appreciated the peace they had fought for and the beauty they had saved.

For the first time in her life, Nesta no longer felt bitter, angry, cold, alone.

Though it had been difficult adjusting from a mortal life to a Fae life, to seeing Elain struggle with her new body while falling for her mate and leaving for the Spring Court with Lucien, Nesta had found her place, under the stars.

When their food was finished and they’d drank until their heads were swimming, both her and Cassian lay flat on the blanket, looking to the skies above, and they talked.

Talked about the lives they’d had and the future they wanted.

She watched as he stretched his wings out, carefree and completely at ease with her.

Cassian still irritated the hell out of her. He was smug and arrogant and mutually, she was a complete annoyance to him. Yet somehow, they worked.

It was impulse when Nesta rose to her feet, stalking to the water and wading into the cool waters. Like starlight, the waters parted around her, the soft fabric of her dress clinging to her legs before she dipped under the surface letting the deeper water engulf her entirely.

When the woman broke the surface again, Cassian was gone from the water’s edge.

With her legs kicking against the gentle current, she looked for him, almost panicking until a sudden black shadow diving into the waters next to her alerted her back to his presence. The bastard had flown from the skies into the lake, and with dark hair splayed across his face, he grinned at her, wings sprayed out across the water.

Even as Nesta called him a mixture of swears and threw multiple vulgar gestures at him their was a flutter of laughter to her voice.

And they kissed.

In that moment, her legs wrapping around his waist as they swam in starlight with the night eternal above them, the pair found each other in the water, Cassian’s wings keeping them from sinking.

They walked home, barefoot, soaking wet, silent once again yet content with the company they had found with one another.

The sun was rising when they kissed goodnight parting with the promise of a second date and maybe another after that.

After all, they had eternity.


End file.
